Letter: Statues for West Kelowna Council

Some of the current West Kelowna city council will not be running for re-election this coming October.

We are taking up a collection to hopefully hire some consultants to come up with a list of potential concept designers who will then be reviewed by a delegation of consultants who will select an artistic designer and construction consultant to develop bronze statues of all council members enshrining their images in historical permanent beauty.

It is our hope that we can collect enough donations to fund the first $650,000 of the above cost. It is our hope that the city will eliminate a lot of future city projects and come up with a further $3.5 million to complete the project.

We believe that at least 1,300 citizens will enjoy seeing this statue however we need to take the $3.5 million from 34,000 citizens who will never see it.

Of course, the above is a satirical parody but;

It worked for the proposed soccer dome. The Soccer Association played the city council and won. What did they win? A $3 plus million, three-quarter size dome that will only be up for around four months of the year. The dome is next to a full size (multi use) soccer field.

One has to wonder if the other non-soccer citizens and future city council know that this council has raided the 10 year capital plan to help justify the payment for the soccer dome. Projects eliminated are:

2021: CNB washrooms/concession – $340,000 – Gone

2021: Soccer field lighting – $267,000 – Gone

2022: New multi-user fields – $485,000 – Gone

2022: Memorial park – stage and pathways and grove – $748,000 – Gone

2023: Kinsmen park construction – $850,000 – Gone

2023: New field development – $915,000 – Gone

Are we non-soccer citizens losing out? I for one would have liked to see more at Memorial Park and a few new multi-use fields rather than one expensive three-quarter soccer dome.

I guess the city council only pays attention to developers, businesses, and special interest groups instead of all of us citizens. Is it time for change?

Winston Churchill stated: “There is nothing government can give you that it hasn’t taken from you in the first place.”